This blog is the place to document ongoing earth changes related to the 7 of 10 plate movements as described by the Zetas.

ZetaTalk: 7 of 10 Sequencewritten October 16, 2010

The 7 of 10 scenarios describe plate movements, and for this to occur something has to release the deadlock, the current stalemate where the plates are locked against each other. Once the deadlock is broken and the plates start moving, sliding past each other, new points where the plates are locked against each other develop, but these are weaker locks than the one at present. The current lock, as we have so often stated, is the Indo-Australian Plate which is being driven under the Himalayans. This is no small lock, as the height of the Himalayans attests. Nevertheless, the activity in this region shows this likely to be the first of the 7 of 10 scenarios to manifest. Bangladesh is sinking and the Coral Sea is rising, showing the overall tipping of the Indo-Australian Plate. Now Pakistan is sinking and not draining its floods as it should, while Jakarta on the tongue of Indonesia is also sinking rapidly, showing that the tilt that will allow Indonesia to sink has already started.

Meanwhile, S America is showing signs of a roll to the west. Explosions on islands just to the north of the S American Plate occurred recently, on Bonaire and Trinidad-Tobago, and the Andes are regularly being pummeled. There is a relationship. As the Indo-Australia Plate lifts and slides, this allows the Pacific plates to shift west, which allows S America to shift west also. This is greatly increased by the folding of the Mariana Trench and the Philippine Plate. But it is the Indo-Australian Plate that gives way to incite change in these other plates, and this is what is manifesting now to those closely following the changes. Once the folding of the Pacific has occurred, Japan has been destabilized. We are not allowed to give a time frame for any of these plate movements, but would point out that it is not until the North Island of Japan experiences its strong quakes that a tsunami causing sloshing near Victoria occurs. There are clues that the New Madrid will be next.

Where the N American continent is under great stress, it has not slipped because it is held in place on both sides. The Pacific side holds due to subduction friction along the San Andreas, and the Atlantic side holds due to the Atlantic Rift's reluctance to rip open. What changes this dynamic? When S America rolls, almost in step with the folding Pacific, it tears the Atlantic Rift on the southern side. This allows Africa freedom to move and it rolls too, dropping the Mediterranean floor above Algeria. What is holding the N American continent together has thus eased, so that when the Japan adjustments are made, there is less holding the N American continent in place than before, and the New Madrid gives way. We are also not allowed to provide the time frame between the Japan quakes and New Madrid. Other than the relationship in time between the New Madrid and the European tsunami, no time frame can be given. The sequence of events is, thus:

a tipping Indo-Australia Plate with Indonesia sinking,

a folding Pacific allowing S America to roll,

a tearing of the south Atlantic Rift allowing Africa to roll and the floor of the Mediterranean to drop,

great quakes in Japan followed by the New Madrid adjustment,

which is followed almost instantly by the tearing of the north Atlantic Rift with consequent European tsunami.

Due to the slowing of the 7 of 10 plate movements by the Council of Worlds the impact of some of the events described above will be lessened.

The Zetas explain:

ZetaTalk: Pace Slowed

Written May 19, 2012

The effect of the thousands of humming boxes placed along fault lines and plate borders can be seen in several incidents that have occurred since the start of the 7 of 10 plate movements. The lack of tsunami during the 7 of 10 sinking of the Sunda Plate is one such example. We predicted at the start of the 7 of 10 scenarios in late 2010 that the Sunda Plate sinking would occur within 2-3 weeks, yet it dragged on through 2011. At the time we had predicted tsunami on the Sunda Plate, in general equivalent in height to the loss of elevation for a coastline. None of this occurred due to the slower pace.

The pace of mountain building in S America, where slowed, has still resulted in rumpling up and down the Andes, and stretch zone accidents likewise in lands to the east of the Andes. The shape of S America has clearly changed. Will the islands in the Caribbean be spared? At some point, as with the magnitude 7.9 quake in Acapulco on March 2, 2012 a significant adjustment will need to occur, and this will include depressing the Caribbean Plate so it tilts, sinking the islands and lands on that portion of the plate to the degree predicted. But the S American roll will likely continue to avoid the magnitude 8 quakes we originally predicted in deference to slow rumpling mountain building. The African roll was anticipated to be a silent roll in any case, so the slowed pace would not affect the outcome.

Will the slowed pace prevent the 7 of 10 scenarios for the Northern Hemisphere? Bowing of the N American continent has reached the point of pain, with breaking rock booming from coast to coast, but still there have been no significant quakes in the New Madrid area. Yet this is past due, and cannot be held back indefinitely. What has and will continue to occur for the Northern Hemisphere scenarios are silent quakes for Japan, which has already experienced drastic subduction under the north island of Hokkaido where mountain building is occurring as a rumple rather than a jolt. However, the anticipated New Madrid adjustment cannot be achieved without trauma. But this could potentially occur in steps and stages such that any European tsunami would be significantly lessened.

What happens when the pace of plate movement is slowed? The likelihood of tsunami is definitely reduced, as can be seen in the sinking on the Sunda Plate. The sinking occurred, and is almost complete, yet the possibility of tsunami we predicted for various regions on the Sunda Plate were avoided. The height and force of a tsunami is directly related to the degree of displacement in the sea floor, and if this happens in steps rather than all at once the displacement will be less for any given step.

This bodes well for the European tsunami. If the Council of Worlds is still imposing a slower pace on the 7 of 10 plate movements, this tsunami will definitely be lessened. The tear in the North Atlantic will be slight, each time. The amount of water pouring into this void will be less, each time. And the rebound toward the UK will likewise be less, each time. But our prediction is the worst case situation, and it also reflects what the Earth changes, unabated, would produce.

But what does a slower pace do to land masses where jolting quakes are expected? Does this reduce the overall magnitude of the quakes anticipated? Large magnitude quakes result when a catch point along plate borders is highly resistant, but snapping of rock finally results. Usually there is one place, the epicenter, where this catch point resides and a long distance along the plate border where smaller quakes have prepared the border for easy movement. A point of resistance within the body of a plate, such as the New Madrid, can likewise resist and suddenly give.

There is no way to lessen the resistance at these catch points, though the tension that accompanies such points can be reduced so that the quake itself is delayed. What this means for a slower 7 of 10 pace is that large magnitude quakes will be spread apart in time, and their relationship to our predictions thus able to be camouflaged by the establishment. Where sinking (such as the Caribbean Island of Trinidad) or spreading apart (such as to the west of the Mississippi River) are to occur, these land changes will eventually arrive. But like the sinking of the Sunda Plate, a slower pace unfortunately allows the cover-up time to maneuver and develop excuses.

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An aerial view of the flood hit areas at the Taman Negara Resort in Kuala Tahan, Pahang. The floods in five states are said to be the worst in the country's history, with close to 100,000 evacuated. – The Malaysian Insider pic, December 25, 2014. Source: themalaysianinsider.com

The declaration of a 'state of emergency' by Putrajaya may prompt the large-scale coordinated effort needed to cope with what's said to be the worse floods in the country's history, says MP Tony Pua. – bombaFB pic, December 25, 2014. Source: themalaysianinsider.com

25 Decmber, 2014. Putrajaya should mobilise all available resources to mitigate the flood situation, even if it means declaring a state of emergency, said a DAP lawmaker.

Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua.said operations should be set up in areas which may be severely affected in the event of continuous downpour."If a 'state of emergency' needs to be declared to ensure such large scale coordinated mobilisation, then Putrajaya must immediately declare a 'state of emergency'."

Pua said if the federal agencies remained lackadaisical and showed little sense of urgency, then Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak should return immediately.Najib was pictured enjoying a round of golf with United States President Barack Obama at the Marine Corps Base course in Kanehoe Bay, Hawaii.

More than 90,000 Malaysians, so far, have been displaced by floods in five states, the highest in the nation's history.

Pua called on the National Security Council to demonstrate leadership to tackle the worst floods in Malaysia's history.

"There has been almost no demonstration of urgency from the NSC," Pua said in a statement. Source:themalaysianinsider.com

Kota Baru submerged in this year’s flood. Five states have been hit by the worst floods since 1971 and the prime minister is not here.

More than 90,000 people have been evacuated in the peninsula's east cost states as floodwaters rise due to incessant rain. While the floods are an annual event, this year's edition has been the worst in living memory.

Hence, the mounting criticism against Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, who has been photographed having a round of golf with US President Barack Obama in Hawaii on Christmas Eve.This is not the first time a Malaysian prime minister has been under flak for not being around when floods hit the country hard. The last was in 2006 when then prime minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi was holidaying in Perth while floodwaters inundated Johor.

Pak Lah, as he is popularly known, came back but the damage was done. It is not known if Najib will cut short his annual year-end holiday and fly home to lead the relief operations.

Some of Najib's defenders say he is conducting golf diplomacy with the world's sole superpower and a photo opportunity of him in waist-deep waters will not necessarily help relief efforts.

But there are critics who say the prime minister should be in the country, rather than tweet or put Facebook status updates about what he has asked his government to do for relief efforts.

After all, the floods are an annual event and most agencies are equipped to handle it.

The point really is as simple as this. This is the biggest floods to hit Malaysia since 1971 and the prime minister is not here.

All the niceties and decrees through social media are lost on the flood victims, who are without electricity and are either trapped in their houses or in relief centres where politicians remain a rare sight Source:themalaysianinsider.com

25 December, 2014. Perak residents recount worst flooding in years

The flooding that hit Lintang and Lasah in Sungai Siput was the worst in decades, according to local residents.

Many recounted tales of devastation, describing how rapidly rising waters engulfed their homes up to rooftop level, as water from Sungai Perak and its tributaries inundated four areas state-wide.Abu Bakar Musa, 91, who was met at a relocation centre in SK Lasah yesterday, said this was the worst flooding to hit the area in recent history.

“I remember that there were similarly strong floods in the 1920s and 1930s, but since then there has been nothing as bad as yesterday.” Source:themalaymailonline.com

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak should declare a state of emergency today to boost rescue efforts as massive floods displace over 90,000 people in five states in peninsular Malaysia, a federal opposition lawmaker said.

“We call upon the Federal Government to mobilise all possible resources to mitigate the flood situation, including setting up operations in areas which hasn’t been flooded yet, but might be severely affected in the event of more rain and rising tides.

“If a ‘state of emergency’ needs to be declared to ensure such large scale coordinated mobilisation, then the Prime Minister must immediately declare a ‘state of emergency’,” the Petaling Jaya Utara MP said in a statement.

The DAP politician also said if the federal government agencies are taking “concrete steps” to tackle the flood woes in the prime minister’s absence, there wouldn’t be a problem with Najib taking his year-end holidays in Hawaii.Source: themalaymailonline.com

Apart from Hulu Telemong, rescue work is also ongoing in other parts of Terengganu, with Civil Defence Department officers working tirelessly to evacuate those trapped in flooded areas. — Bernama pic. Source: therakyatpost.com

A university student leader says the worsening floods in the country is an occasion for both Pakatan Rakyat and Barisan Nasional to work together to alleviate the suffering of the flood victims. – The Malaysian Insider pic, December 24, 2014. Source: themalaysianinsider.com

A farmer tries on Wednesday to round up his ducks as they float along in floodwaters inundating a paddy field in Kroya, Cilacap. A number of farmers say widespread flooding in the regency has inflicted huge financial losses as waters swept away thousands of chickens and significant amounts of livestock. (JP/Agus Maryono). Source: thejakartapost.com

24 December, 2014. Record floods displace thousands in Indonesia, MalaysiaRecord-breaking rainfall has displaced nearly 100,000 people in Indonesia and Malaysia, forcing residents from their homes and stranding tourists during the region’s rainy season.

Almost 62,000 people have been evacuated in Malaysia, a Fire and Rescue Department chief told The Anadolu Agency on Wednesday. He added that between 100 to 200 others – mostly tourists -- were stranded at a national park in Pahang state during the heaviest rainfall in 40 years.

"They are stranded in three resorts around the national park. We are using helicopter and boats to retrieve them,” Wan Mohd Nor Ibrahim said in a text message. “The utmost priority would be their safety."

Visitors and staff at the Mutiara Taman Negara Resort were stranded after riverbanks overflowed across the park, which spans more than 1 million acres and recorded its highest rainfall since 1971.Ibrahim said the flood situation across Malaysia’s East Coast states was getting worse day by day, making it necessary to establish more evacuation centers.Explaining that the people of the region are familiar with the rainy season, he said, “It was just that this year, we didn't expect such rainfall which causes unexpected chaos."

In Indonesia, more than 34,500 people have been displaced on the islands of Java and Sumatra amid heavy downpour that left around 7,370 homes submerged since last week.Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, national disaster management agency spokesperson, said in a press release that “there were no fatalities" in the flooding in the provinces of Aceh and West Java.

Around 28,000 people were forced to take shelter in makeshift tents and buildings located on higher ground in Aceh’s Tamiang Regency as water levels reached heights of 40 –150 cm. Meanwhile, more than 6,600 others have evacuated their homes in West Java since the Citarum River – the largest and longest in the province – began overflowing Thursday.

"People in the area are familiar with the Citarum River overflow caused by floods," said Sutopo. He adding that disaster management officials, police and soldiers have been helping in evacuation efforts and setting up tents, public kitchens and health services.Source: worldbulletin.net

24 December, 2014. Floods displace 120,000 people in Indonesia's Aceh

Floods in Indonesia's Aceh province in the northern tip of Sumatra island have displaced at least 120,966 people, an official said here Wednesday.Water levels rose to 400 cm in the districts of North Aceh and East Aceh, Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, spokesman of national disaster agency, told Xinhua over phone.

Those being trapped or affected by the floods are being evacuated by soldiers, police, and local disaster agency officials, the spokesman said.

Other areas being inundated by the waters include the provincial capital, Banda Aceh, the districts of Aceh Tamiang, South Aceh, Pidie, and Lhoksemawe, said Sutopo.Emergency relief aid has been sent to the centres of evacuation, he said.

Rescue personnel and the affected people badly required rubber boats, fast food, blankets, and baby food, Sutopo said.On Tuesday, the agency reported that the number of evacuee stood at 28,000 people.Indonesia is frequently struck by floods and landslides during this time of the year. Source:business-standard.com

24 December, 2014. Gua Musang residents say 'flash floods worst ever'

“The floods tragedy this year has been exceptionally extraordinary and frightening.”

Devastated by the flash floods, Kampung Batu Papan residents have been crying foul since their village was turned into ‘an island’ after devastating flash floods hit the area.Parts of Gua Musang were heavily flooded since Dec 21 and may roads cut off as torrential downpour caused havoc for households in days and merely three days after residents found themselves bailing out water from their homes after the second wave of severe weather hits the East Coast

Describing the floods as the worst in the last 30 years, resident Ibrahim Ismail said he almost gave up hope as he painfully sees his house was submerged and damaged in the flood waters."The floods this year has been extraordinary and equally frightening as 100 per cent of the residents had to be evacuated. As far as I can remember, this has been the worst tragedy occurred in Batu Papan, even in 2001 was not as bad,” said Ibrahim.

An approximately, 200 homes in Kampung Batu Papan were damaged in floodwaters.

“I woke up at around 2am and the water seemed subsided. This morning, water level has tremendously increased and this has been the occurrence since yesterday. This marks the first after residing in this area for the last 30 years this had to be the worst. Totally unexpected,” said another resident, Mohd Alif Yusof. Source:english.astroawani.com

24 December, 2014. Worst floods in 28 years for two Terengganu villages

Villagers have described the severe floods which struck two villages in the Telemong state constituency here as the worst in the last 28 years.Telemong assemblyman Datuk Rozi Mamat said this year’s floods were worse than the floods in 1986 as the two villages were the first to be hit by the fast-flowing Sungai Telemong.

“The river overflowed about 2am and there was no time for the villagers to salvage their belongings.

“Some of them were not prepared at all as they have never been through this calamity and much of their property has been destroyed,” he told reporters today.Rozi said that initially the two villages ran short of food as they were cut off by the floods and food supplies could not be delivered immediately as the authorities were hampered by strong currents and heavy rain.

Kampung Basong Development and Security Committee (JKKK) deputy chairman Basong Mohd Salleh said usually only 10 families would be affected every time there were floods, but the number had increased to 70 families involving 300 people.

“The floods this time are very severe and I am also affected. My house has never been hit before but this time the water rose up to chest level at my house,” he said. Source: therakyatpost.com

THOSE on the east coast have been warned to brace themselves for the worst floods in recent history.

A powerful combination of king tides and strong winds are expected to slam into Kelantan, Terengganu and Pahang, which are still dealing with slowly receding floodwaters.

Communities in coastal areas and along river mouths have been warned to ready themselves for immediate grab-and-go evacuations, as the worst is expected to unfold tonight or tomorrow.The high-alert notification follows not only the sustained rain in recent days, but is also in anticipation of tidal waves as high as 4.35m hitting the states.

This is expected to happen for two nights from yesterday.Many in coastal areas in Terengganu last night caught a glimpse of the power that comes with waves that high.

About 10pm, a little under two hours after 2.9m waves hit, residential areas were inundated by floodwaters that rose rapidly to about 30cm high.

The last time floods of this magnitude occurred was some 20 years ago.

Other states hit by the floods include Sabah, Sarawak, Labuan and Perak.

The department said the unusually high tides and floods were caused by a combination of three elements: the new moon, surges of strong winds and the perigee, or the point when the moon is closest to the Earth and its gravitational force is at its strongest.

“With the moon close to Earth and the stronger gravitational pull, the consequential stronger pull on water causes high tides.

“The new moon and perigee normally occur separately, but now, they are occurring almost simultaneously,” he told the New Straits Times, adding that strong winds of 60kph over the South China Sea were exacerbating the situation. Source:nst.com.my

24 December, 2014. Floods hit six states of Malaysia

Floods continued to ravage several states in Malaysia, sending more than 58,000 people to evacuation centers on Wednesday morning, reports reaching here said.

The northern state of Kelantan had the most number of evacuees followed by the states of Terengganu, Pahang, Perak, Sabah and Perlis.

In Kelantan, the number of evacuees rose by 3,164 overnight from 21,601, forcing the opening of 18 more relief centers to take the total to 114 Wednesday.

Twenty-three roads in eight districts in the state of Klelantan remain closed to traffic. Seventeen of these roads are closed to all vehicles.

According to official sources, the Kelantan Fire and Rescue Department plans to use helicopters to transport rescue boats to certain flood-hit areas in the state for the evacuation of flood victims.

In another northern state of Teregganu, 8,977 more people were evacuated overnight, raising to 21,606 the number of victims in the state.In the state of Pahang, 4,539 people in eight districts were moved to relief centers Wednesday morning, taking the total number of evacuees in the state to 10,825.

According to official sources, in the state of Perak, the districts of Hulu Perak and Kuala Kangsar are among the worst affected in the state. Up to 1,030 people in the two districts have been moved to relief centers. Source:news.xinhuanet.com

Thailand

A villager's house badly damaged by a storm that hit Narathiwat in Thailand. The four southernmost provinces of Songkhla, Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat said that 36 districts among them were affected by the disaster. Flooding in the region has been described as the worst in two decades. -- PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE. Source: straitstimes.com

24 December, 2014.26,000 Thai families affected by floods

More than 26,000 families in Thailand's south have been hit by what has been described as the worst flooding in decades, while the army scrambles to step up relief efforts.

According to the Bangkok Post yesterday, Phatthalung province declared six districts disaster areas with flood waters in some areas as high as 1.5m, affecting 10,000 households.

The four southernmost provinces of Songkhla, Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat also said on Monday that 36 districts among them were disaster-hit.

The Pattani River quickly overflowed to swamp the provincial town's business area, with nearly all roads covered by up to 50cm of water. Source:straitstimes.com

Special Report: In Jakarta, that sinking feeling is all too real

JAKARTA (Reuters) - The Ciliwung River flows from a volcano south of the Indonesian capital, through the heart of one of the world’s most densely populated cities and almost into Jakarta Bay. Almost, because for the final mile or so of its course, the river would have to flow uphill to reach the bay.

The same is true for the rest of the half-dozen sewage-choked rivers that wind though central Jakarta. Unable to defy gravity, they've been redirected to canals that drain into the sea.

The reason these conduits are necessary is that Greater Jakarta, an agglomeration of 28 million people, sits on a swampy plain that has sunk 13 feet (4 meters) over the past three decades.

“Jakarta is a bowl, and the bowl is sinking,” said Fook Chuan Eng, senior water and sanitation specialist with the World Bank, who oversees a $189 million flood mitigation project for the city.

The channels of the Ciliwung and other rivers are sinking. The entire sprawl of Jakarta’s north coast - fishing ports, boatyards, markets, warehouses, fish farms, crowded slums and exclusive gated communities - it’s all sinking. Even the 40-year-old seawall that is supposed to keep the Java Sea from inundating the Indonesian capital is sinking.

Just inside the seawall sits the Muara Baru kampong, or village, that is home to more than 100,000 people. It is now at least 6 feet below sea level, and residents like Rahmawati, a mother of two small children, gaze upward from their front stoops to view the sea.

“When there’s a high tide, the ships float almost at the same height as the seawall – we can see the ships from here,” said Rahmawati, who like many Indonesians goes by one name.

Flooding from overflowing rivers and canals in the area is at least an annual event that forces Rahmawati and the rest of the kampong to evacuate to public buildings nearby. High-water marks from the last big flood, in 2013, are still visible on the walls of the kampong.

“WORST SINKING CITY”

Jakarta is sinking because of a phenomenon called subsidence. This happens when extraction of groundwater causes layers of rock and sediment to slowly pancake on top of each other.

The problem is particularly acute in Jakarta because most of its millions of residents suck water through wells that tap shallow underground aquifers. Wells also provide about a third of the needs of business and industry, according to city data.

"It’s like Swiss Cheese underneath,” the World Bank’s Fook said. “Groundwater extraction is unparalleled for a city of this size. People are digging deeper and deeper, and the ground is collapsing."

The effect is worsened by the sheer weight of Jakarta's urban sprawl. Economic development in recent decades has transformed the city’s traditional low-rise silhouette into a thickening forest of high-rise towers. The weight of all those buildings crushes the porous ground underneath.

Previous articles in this series have focused on rising seas, which are climbing as the warming atmosphere causes water to expand and polar ice to melt. Ocean levels have increased an average of 8 inches globally in the past century, according to the United Nations-backed Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

But in many places - from metro Houston, Texas, and cities on the U.S. East Coast to the megacities of Southeast Asia - the impact of subsidence, due mainly to groundwater extraction, has been greater. Manila is sinking at a rate of around 3.5 inches a year. Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, is subsiding 3 inches a year, and Bangkok around an inch.

This has been happening even as populations around the world have tended to concentrate along low-lying coastal land. In 2010, an estimated 724 million people around the world lived in what researchers consider low-elevation coastal zones - coastal areas 10 meters or less above sea level. That number increased 34 percent from 538 million people in 1990, according to a Reuters analysis of data developed by the Socioeconomic Data and Applications Center at Columbia University.

The phenomenon has been most pronounced in Asia, home to the top five nations in terms of population growth in vulnerable coastal areas. In China, that population rose 29 percent to 162 million during the 20-year period; in India, the increase was 43 percent to 88 million; and in Bangladesh, it was 46 percent to 68 million.

In Indonesia, the number of people living in vulnerable coastal areas was 47.2 million - one of the highest totals in the world, and up 35 percent since 1990.

Higher seas, sinking cities and more people mean worsening impacts from storms and floods. And the frequency of these events is increasing, too. Recorded floods and severe storms in Southeast Asia have risen sixfold, from fewer than 20 from 1960 to 1969 to nearly 120 from 2000 to 2008, according to an Asian Development Bank study.

No city is subsiding faster than Jakarta. As a whole, the city is sinking an average of 3 inches a year, far outpacing the one-third inch annual rise in mean sea level in the area. The coast near Jakarta is sinking at a much greater average of six inches a year – and in some places as much as 11 inches - according to a 10-year study by a team of geodynamics experts from the Institute of Technology Bandung.

Today, 40 percent of the city is below sea level.

“Jakarta is the world’s worst sinking city,” said JanJaap Brinkman, a hydrologist with the Dutch water research institute Deltares, who has spent years studying the city’s subsidence and helping devise solutions for it.

Little can be done to halt the slow upward creep of the seas. But it is possible to stop subsidence. Jakarta has regulations limiting the amount of water that can be extracted daily from licensed wells. A public-awareness campaign on television urges viewers to “save groundwater for the sake of our nation.” But enforcement is weak, and illegal wells are rife in the city.

About three-fourths of residents rely on groundwater. Many of them are refusing to connect to the piped water distribution system because it is more expensive, is not always available and sometimes looks dirty coming out of the tap.

The city has a moratorium on new mall construction, mainly to ease notorious traffic congestion, but has otherwise not tried to temper the building that weighs on the ground below.

WATERSHED MOMENT

Unable to stop itself from sinking, Jakarta has focused its attention on walling off an inevitable inundation from the sea. A February 2007 storm was literally a tipping point for moving the government to act.

A strong monsoon storm coinciding with a high tide overwhelmed ramshackle coastal defenses, pushing a wall of water from Jakarta Bay into the capital. It was the first time a storm surge from the sea had flooded the city. Nearly half of Jakarta was covered by as much as 13 feet of muddy water. At least 76 people were killed, and 590,000 were left homeless. Damage reached $544 million.

As Jakarta cleaned up, then-President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono formed a task force to come up with a strategy to deal with more frequent flooding.

One option discussed was to move the overcrowded capital to higher elevations southeast of the city or to another island altogether, said Robert Sianipar, a top official from the Coordinating Ministry of Economic Affairs, which convened the task force. With 5,585 people per square km (0.4 square mile), Jakarta is among the 10 most densely populated cities in the world.

Another thought was simply to abandon the old city district of north Jakarta.

Both ideas were dismissed. Jakarta is the economic hub of Indonesia, contributing 20 percent of the nation’s gross domestic product. Allowing the sea to claim 40 percent of the capital city, home to nearly half of Jakarta's population, was unthinkable, Sianipar said. “If we abandon north Jakarta, that would cost $220 billion in assets – not to count the number of people and productivity that would have to be replaced,” he said.

The group decided to focus on bolstering coastal defenses and refurbishing the crumbling flood canal system. The Dutch government offered technical assistance.

The height of the existing 20-mile seawall was raised in 2008. But as that structure slips under the waves, it offers little protection against another big storm surge, or even a moderately high spring tide. At high tide in some places, the city’s old seawall can barely be seen poking above the water's surface, both because the sea is rising and because the wall itself is sinking into soft alluvial sediments.

The World Bank warned in a 2012 report that catastrophic floods would soon become routine in Jakarta, “resulting in severe socio-economic damage.”

A school boy crosses a bridge in Luar Batang, one of the oldest kampongs in Jakarta, dating back to …

The task force was still trying to decide on an overall strategy when the World Bank’s prediction came true in January 2013: Parts of the city were submerged under 6 feet of water after a heavy monsoon storm. Days later, President Yudhoyono ordered the task force to take a bolder approach.

The result was the National Capital Integrated Coastal Development Master Plan, better known as the “Giant Sea Wall” or the “Great Garuda," for its resemblance from the air to the bird-god of Hindu mythology that is Indonesia’s national symbol. The $40 billion complex will include a 15-mile outer seawall and 17 artificial islands that will close off Jakarta Bay.

Construction of the first stage of the plan, a new 6-foot-wide inner seawall just behind the existing one, was launched on Oct. 9. The inner seawall is aimed at buying time, holding off another inundation until the new outer wall of the Great Garuda provides long-term protection.

The Great Garuda won’t, however, restore the flow of some of the sinking city's 13 rivers and various canals into Jakarta Bay.

Some of the channels drain into floodwater retention lakes, a magnet for new migrants from outlying provinces who squat illegally around their perimeters. Pumping stations then spew the highly polluted water from these lakes the last few hundred yards into Jakarta Bay.

More and bigger such lakes will soon be needed to discharge the water of all other rivers and canals, including the large flood canals, according to the NCICD Master Plan. “You’re talking about pumping lakes up to 100 square kilometers,” said Victor Coenen, Indonesia chief representative for Dutch engineering and consulting firm Witteven+Bos, who was part of the government’s Dutch consulting team. “Where do you find room for that in a densely populated city?”

The Great Garuda would solve that problem by creating a single gigantic storage lake in Jakarta Bay, enclosed by the inner and outer seawalls and fed by pumping stations onshore. “If it comes to that, I’d prefer to have the one big black lagoon offshore,” Coenen said.

To prevent the Great Garuda from looking like a great black lagoon, the city must address another huge priority – providing clean piped water to most of its citizens and setting up waste treatment facilities so the rivers and canals no longer have to function as open sewers.

“NOT A DROP TO DRINK”

Jakarta under Dutch rule was known as Batavia, styled "the Queen of the East" for its distinctive colonial architecture and tree-lined canals. Closer inspection of the coast revealed "a dismal succession of stinking mud-banks, filthy bogs and stagnant pools (that) announces to more senses than one the poisonous nature of this dreadful climate," British writer John Joseph Stockdale observed in his 1811 book, "Island of Java."

Then as now, "stagnant canals" functioned as open sewers and exhaled "an intolerable stench." In the wet season, "those reservoirs of corrupted water overflow their banks in the lower part of town, and fill the lower stories of the houses where they leave behind an inconceivable quantity of slime and earth."

Today, the city has just one small wastewater treatment plant that serves the central business district. Almost everyone uses septic tanks or dumps waste into neighborhood sewers that flow into the canal system.

The slime has mounted over the centuries in the canals, and their embankments have risen in a failing effort to contain the flood waters. The canals that flow to the sea or into the coastal retention ponds have lost up to 75 percent of their capacity, said Brinkman at Deltares.

The city is near the end of a three-year project to deepen the canals and increase the height of their walls. But the homes alongside them are often below the level of the canals now, leaving no "vertical escape" to the rooftop in a flood, he said.

A city with an extensive canal system and a tropical rainforest climate should not have a water shortage. Yet only about a quarter of Jakarta’s population is connected to the city’s piped water system. Half draw their water from wells, and the other quarter buy from vendors who get their water from both legal and illegal public wells.

Some city residents who could have access to piped water prefer to use groundwater because connection fees – a month’s minimum wage - and additional charges on the bill make it much more expensive than a backyard well.

Piped water is also unpopular because it is often filthy when it comes out of the tap. There’s a good reason for that: Half of Jakarta’s water supply comes from the basin of the Citarum River, which the Asia Development Bank has dubbed “the world’s dirtiest river.” It is so clogged with industrial and agricultural effluents and waste from the teeming settlements along its banks that it almost seems like you could walk across parts of the river.

Groundwater is hardly better. Seventy percent of the wells in the city are contaminated by the E. coli bacteria from leaking septic tanks, according to a study conducted by the city government.

The water crisis has been a boon to the increasing ranks of water vendors who drag long carts filled with 5-gallon (20-liter) jerrycans of water around the kampongs. One jerrycan costs about 500 rupiah (4 U.S. cents).

They are especially prevalent in the coastal districts, where subsidence has allowed saltwater to flow into the water table, making well water undrinkable. And in some areas along the coast, piped water is only sporadically available during the day.

The Jakarta government does not publish data on the volume of groundwater use. But the city’s new governor, Basuki Tjajaja Purnama, said illegal use of groundwater had reached “alarming levels.” He said he will start enforcing a 2008 law that imposes fines of up to 1 billion rupiah ($80,000) and jail terms of six years for those who misuse groundwater.

The concrete jungle is not only an intensive water user; it has also taken over natural drainage sites and green areas, preventing the water tables below from being recharged. Instead of seeping into the ground, monsoon rains now wash into the canals and out to the sea.

In 2009, the Ministry of Environment came up with a novel idea to restore the water tables: It issued a decree requiring homeowners and commercial buildings to store rainwater in 3-foot-deep “biopore cylinders” on their properties to absorb and store rainwater. The decree has no enforcement mechanism, and the city environment ministry could not say how many cylinders had been installed.

ON THE MOVE

The city has recently tried another tack in its water wars: evicting settlers to create green areas along the coast.

Tens of thousands of squatters occupy large swaths of the Muara Baru kampong, behind the seawall and around a retention pond, scavenging, collecting green mussels or shrimp from the dirty water, or picking up work in the boatyards.

Every year, the floods come, people evacuate to public buildings, and the kampong sinks some more. “It’s not that bad,” says Sukiman, a 41-year-old father of three and a neighborhood chief in Muara Baru. “We can live here.”

But Muara Baru’s days appear to be numbered. The city has begun shifting the residents to create green space and to restore the Pluit retention pond, which had become clogged with garbage and waste.

Those who have a residency card may be eligible to get an apartment in new high-rise public housing projects. Those buildings, going up alongside luxury apartments and retail stores, will add to the weight pressing down on steadily subsiding land and - as with other besieged coasts around the world facing rising sea levels - only worsen the problem.

Flash floods kill 25 in Sri Lanka, leave thousands marooned

FLASH floods have killed at least 25 people in Sri Lanka and left more than a quarter of a million marooned in their homes, disaster officials say.

Heavy rains, which have battered the island for much of the week, were still being reported in 14 of Sri Lanka's 25 administrative districts, with the central highlands - one of the world's key tea producing regions - the worst hit.

Sarath Lal Kumara, the deputy director of the Disaster Management Centre, said on Thursday that 25 people were now known to have died and a further 36 remained missing.

Most of the deaths were due to landslides engulfing homes.

The disaster management centre said more than 265,000 people had been cut off in their homes by the floods and thousands more had either sought refuge with relatives and friends or else been given emergency shelter.

"We have housed some 18,845 people from over 5000 families in 102 relief camps", Mr Kumara said.

Many of the evacuations took place in the central district of Matale after authorities declared it a danger zone over landslide fears.

Bhadra Kamaladasa, the director general of irrigation, said that around half of the country's 71 main reservoirs were overflowing.

In the west coastal town of Chilaw at least five fishermen had gone missing. The main motorway and the town were under six feet of flood water, police said.

The Railway Department announced the disruption of several key services as the tracks remained submerged.

The floods are some of the worst in Sri Lanka since early 2011 when unusually heavy monsoon rains left at least 64 people dead and drove more than one million people out of their homes.

ZetaTalk: High Tide Excuses

Written January 22, 2011

This is not credible. How can people believe that floods can be predicted through March in the Philippines? The cover story on sinking is getting pretty thin. From the article at the link, at some point soon TPTB will have to come clean here.[and from another]http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/Hundreds of thousands of people already reeling from floods across the Philippines have been told to expect further heavy rains until March, as the disaster death toll rose to 53.

Rain has been overused by the establishment as an excuse for the obvious sinking. The establishment is now switching to high tides as an excuse, claiming that a storm surge is creating a high tide. Since the cause of a storm surge can be away from the shore, and not easily determined by the common man busy with his daily activities, this excuse is less easily challenged. The high tide or storm surge excuse will also move to tsunami, blaming a quake in some locale or another. But eventually, when the flood waters do not drain, the truth will out. Pakistan shows the process, as flooding in July was claimed to be slow draining due to continued rain up river, along the Indus River highlands. It was months later, almost half a year later, that it was acknowledged by NASA that the flood waters were not going to drain. The people on the ground, those affected, already knew this. It was not until the issue left the media, and those around the world would presume that the Pakistan floods had receded, that NASA made this admission.

The same process would occur in Indonesia, were it not for what is to soon follow. Our predictions were not just for the sinking of the plate tongue holding Indonesia. They were for islands in the Caribbean to disappear and Central America to be crushed. The locks at Panama are used for shipping worldwide, to bypass having to go around the tip of S America. This will not be out of the news, but will be a continuing subject due to the impact on business. The press does not, in fact, hold the public captive, like sheep, waiting to be told what to think! Look at commerce. Commerce involves a lot of face-to-face meetings and interaction. Phones are used, and cannot be blocked as commerce would likely halt then. The same is true of the Internet, which is used by universities, defence departments, and especially commerce to an immense degree. How do you stop people from talking? How do you stop awareness of the Straits of Gibraltar spreading by 125 miles and Africa moving 50 miles further east?

So of course plate movement will have to be admitted, and to the degree that our predictions are associated with this people will discover ZetaTalk, even without the assistance of the Puppet Master's determination to inform the public and encourage the formation of strong survival communities. We have stated that the establishment will become shrill in attacking our message, and ourselves as the source, as the truth of our predictions comes to light. Look at the past 15 years, since ZetaTalk began. Alternate emissaries or spokespersons have been pushed upon the public, though were not accepted. NASA associates were given the stage to pronounce our theories to be hogwash, and as long as NASA has a modicum of respect this will continue. The Earth changes have been blamed on the Sun, even when the Sun did not cooperate, or on some mythical galactic alignment. The noise level will increase, so that the public increasingly sets about discerning the truth for themselves. ZetaTalk aligns with the facts, and has the track record, and thus will emerge the winner in this war.ZetaTalk: High Tide Excuses

KUALA LUMPUR: The new moon phenomenon, when the moon is closest to the earth and causes high tide, is among the factors that triggered extraordinary flooding in the east coast this year.

Meteorological Department National Weather Centre senior meteorological officer Dr Mohd Hisham Mohd Anip said the flood situations worsened with the presence of northeast monsoon winds blowing consistently across the South China Sea to Malaysia starting November until March."Although rainfall is no longer heavy, flood waters do not seem to recede due to the new moon phenomenon as it causes higher tides than normal.

"Besides that, previously incessant rainfall caused water from the upstream to not reach the confluence and resulted in overflowing rivers," he said when contacted by Bernama today.

He said they predict the heavy rainfall since last week due to northeast monsoon winds in Kelantan, Terengganu and Pahang will continue until early January.

"However, the weather is expected to be more favourable today until tomorrow with many of our forecasts showing showers in only one or two areas in the affected states," he said.

Dr Mohd Hisham explained that the northeast monsoon wind brought about heavy rainfall in three episodes, namely the first episode which ended in November, the second episode between Dec 16 and 19 followed by the third episode which started on Monday and will last until tomorrow.

"Although the weather is expected to be good on these two days, we predict a fourth episode to start from Dec 28 to 30 and it may continue until early January," he said.

Dr Mohd Hisham said they do not dismiss the possibility that floods may hit low-lying areas near the river after Dec 28.

"During the northeast monsoon season, the east coast is expected to experience four to five episodes of heavy rainfall for between three to seven days in November until January 2015, as well as western Sarawak and Sabah from January until March 2015."Therefore, people living by the river and in low-lying areas are advised to prepare for any possibility, including floods," he said.

Meanwhile, the Meteorological Department said in a statement today that strong northeast winds with speeds of 60 kilometres per hour in the coastal areas of the east coast, Sarawak, Sabah and Labuan is expected to last until tomorrow. In addition, rough seas and waves of up to 5.5 metres will pose a danger to beach and shipping activities, including to workers on oil platforms.

The statement added that the coastal areas of Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang and east Johor are vulnerable to a rise in sea levels until tomorrow.Source of article and image:english.astroawani.com

Floods in Thailand's Su-ngai Kolok border district as weather bureau warns of more rains until Wednesday. Source: twitter.com

Floodwaters now stand waist-deep or higher in many areas around the Thailand/Malaysia border [AFP]. Source:aljazeera.com

Fire and Rescue Department personnel help steer transfer a family affected by the floods in Kampung Bukit Tadok, to a nearby shelter in Hulu Terengganu, December 20, 2014. ― Bernama pic. Source: themalaymailonline.com

The second waves of floods in the east coast states of Kelantan, Terengganu and Pahang continued to worsen on Tuesday (Dec 23), forcing more people out of flooded homes overnight. Source: theborneopost.com

21 December, 2014. Authorities said the floods in Kelantan are the worst of the past decade after rain fell continuously for more than 12 hours Saturday, swelling the number of flood victims at relief centres state-wide to almost 20,000.

"I was told this is the worst flood season over a ten year period. Luckily the authorities are ready to serve the 20,000 people seeking refuge at the relief centers" said Local Government, Housing, Health and Environment Committee chairman Datuk Abdul Fattah Mahmood.Heavy rain that started at 3am on Saturday worsened the flood situation.

The official Kelantan flood portal at ebanjir.kelantan.gov.my reported that Pasir Mas, especially Rantau Panjang town, had been crippled by floods since Wednesday. Source:news.asiaone.com

19 December, 2014. Nine South provinces face floods, landslides

As the National Disaster Warning Center issued a warning yesterday that nine provinces in the South face the risks of floods and landslides until Saturday, a soldier died in a boat accident while helping villagers escape deep flooding in Narathiwat province.

In Yala's Than To district, a landslide killed a seven-year-old girl and injured her parents.

Master Sergeant First Class Channarong Malicheun of the Narathiwat Special Task Force 36 was killed late on Wednesday night as the flat-bottom boat that his team was using to remove locals overturned and sank in the strong currents of Sungai Kolok River in Sungai Kolok district. As of press time, his body had yet to be found.

The situation in the province is critical, as Sungai Kolok, Bang Nara and Sai Buri rivers have overflowed by two meters, causing the Sungai Kolok border pass to be temporarily closed. People are advised to use the Tak Bai border pass instead. Source:phuketgazette.net

Narathiwat province in southern Thailand has declared a natural disaster emergency in all 13 districts after being struck by the worst floods in nine years that has claimed three lives.

Governor Nattapong Sirichana said a soldier had been reported missing, believed to have been washed away by the floodwaters that had destroyed 12 houses, forced the closure of 115 schools and triggered landslides at stretches of eight roads.

A total of 115,853 people had been affected by the floods, he said.

He also said that the body of a 14-year-old boy, Sulaiman Yusuf, was found in the Golok River. Sulaiman, who had lived in Jarenket in Sungai Golok town, was washed away by the strong current when playing in the water with friends, according to authorities.

A 30-year-old man drowned in a river in Kg Bandi in the Muang Yala district in Yala province. An eight-year-old boy was found dead in the Pattani River in Pattani.

The soldier was washed away by the strong currents while helping residents to evacuate in Sungai Golok.

This evening, the three districts of Takbai, Sungai Golok and Weang bordering Malaysia remained flooded. Source: bernama.com.my

23 December, 2014. Floods hit Thailand and Malaysia

Parts of southern Thailand and northern Malaysia have experienced severe flooding in recent days after heavy rains hit the region. Despite mass evacuations, at least four people are known to have died so far.

The daily rainfall totals across the south of Thailand have been in excess of 50mm for the last few weeks. On Monday, Pattani recorded 84mm of rain whilst Hat Yai had 92mm. The floodwaters now stand waist-deep or higher in many areas.

The flooding has been in place now for many days in Narathiwat province in southern Thailand. According to the provincial governor, Natthaphong Sirichana, the floods are likely to continue into the new year, and there is the potential for flash floods over the entire province.

South of the border, torrential rains in the northeastern Malay peninsula continue to fall. The state of Kelantan is suffering what has been dubbed the worst flooding in the past decade.

One local resident declared ‘in all my years, this is the first time I've had to come to an evacuation centre.’ Another added ‘my whole house was submerged. I don't even want to go home.’

More than 20,000 have been affected. Water levels did recede in some parts of the state over the weekend but other areas remain inundated. Source: aljazeera.com

23 December, 2014. 36 far South districts now hit by floods

With 36 districts in the four southernmost provinces of Songkhla, Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat declared disaster-hit areas, the municipality area of Pattani has also been inundated and the water has reached the suburbs of Songkhla's Hat Yai district, reports said.

In Pattani province, pushed by the high tide, the Pattani River quickly overflowed to swamp the provincial town's business area, with nearly all roads 30-50 centimetres under water.

About 11pm on Monday, high waves and tides pushed up the water level in the Songkhla municipality to hit the Kao Seng community, forcing residents of more than 20 households to evacuate. Source: bangkokpost.com

22 December, 2014. East coast floods ‘extraordinary’, says Shahidan

The floods inundating east coast states in Peninsular Malaysia, especially in Kelantan, have been regarded as extraordinary, and all quarters must view the matter seriously to avoid untoward incidents.Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim said, currently, several major rivers in the states were reported to have returned to the danger level, and more people might have to be evacuated.

“At the same time, the water levels of rivers have gone up again in Gua Musang. People are being re-evacuated in Kuantan, Pahang and Besut in Terengganu.“Take cognizance of this phenomenon because the continuous rain can result in a bigger (second) wave (of floods),” he told Bernama when visiting a flood relief centre at Sekolah Kebangsaan Sri Tumpat 2 here this evening.As of tonight, more than 16,000 flood victims had been evacuated to 60 relief centres in eight districts in Kelantan.

The floods had also caused almost 200 residents in Gua Musang to be evacuated after the water level in Sungai Galas, Sungai Lebir and Sungai Kelantan exceeded the danger level following heavy rain since yesterday.

Shahidan also expressed regret that some residents in the state were turning the floods into a festival by swimming and bathing in flood waters, an act that could result in a mishap for them.

“This is not an ordinary flood...this is extraordinary. Do not regard it as a festival.

“This time around, the current is strong...and I hope everyone will extra careful,” he said Source:themalaymailonline.com

Indonesia

People are evacuated by boat after their homes were flooded, on Jl Baleendah in Bandung, West Java, on Saturday. Several districts of the city were inundated from 1 to 3 meters deep after the Citarum River overran its banks following heavy rain. (Antara/Noviran Arbi). Source: thejakartapost.com

Around 15,000 homes in Bandung regency, West Java, were inundated following heavy rain over the past few days, while more floods and bad weather are expected throughout the archipelago in the coming week.Bandung regency Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) chief Marlan said residents in seven districts who previously insisted on saying in their flooded homes were being evacuated.

“Many of them who had chosen to stay have requested evacuation help,” Marlan told The Jakarta Post.The affected districts are Baleendah, Banjaran, Bojongsoang, Cicalengka, Dayeuhkolot, Rancaekek and Soreang.More than 4,000 people have left their homes since floods hit on Friday morning. “The number continues to grow because evacuations are ongoing,” Marlan said.The agency has prepared shelters in the districts, including at police and military headquarters and houses of worship.

Heavy rain caused the Citarum River to overflow, pouring water into Baleendah, Dayeuhkolot and Bojongsoang districts. Flooding worsened after a section of the riverbank collapsed in Cileunyi.Roads were also inundated in Baleendah, Bojongsoang and Dayeuhkolot, while flooding has also forced state-owned electricity company PT PLN to shut down three power stations in Baleendah for safety.

A spokesman for PLN’s West Java and Bandung distribution office Agus Yuswanta said the shutdown affected around 1,800 homes in Parung Halang, Andir, Cigado, Cikarees, Cieunteung and Kulalet.

“We will turn on the power once authorities deem it is safe for us to do so,” Agus said.

Heavy rains have also triggered floods in Sumatra and Java.

Land transportation was cut off and around 760 houses were inundated in 16 villages in Gresik regency in East Java as of Friday.Hundreds of families were evacuated after a flash flood hit Bojonegoro regency in East Java on Friday.

Floods also damaged 526.5 hectares of farmland in eight districts in Indragiri Hulu regency in Riau, where farmers recently started a new planting season.

Authorities in Padangpariaman regency in West Sumatra have issued flood and landslide warnings in their area, which includes a section of the Trans-Sumatra highway and the Minangkabau International Airport. Source: thejakartapost.com

23 December, 2014. Floods claim lives in N.Sumatra, Cilacap still

Floods were still engulfing areas across the country on Sunday, killing two children in a village in North Sumatra.The victims, identified as Ilham and Ikram, were swept away by swift currents in South Securai village, Babalan district, Langkat regency on Sunday afternoon.

Ilham father’s Sumadi said the children were riding their bicycles near the flood location and slipped and fell in a hole and were swept away by the river current.“The swift current swept them down to the river. The were found dead by rescuers,” Sumardi told The Jakarta Post on Monday.

The victims were buried in their village on Monday.

Sumardi said the floods in the village frequently took place during the rainy season, hoping the government would pay attention to the flood problem in their village.

“The recurring floods have claimed a lot of lives here,” he said.

On Monday, floods engulfing thousands of homes in a number of regions in North Sumatra started to recede, including in Langkat.However, residents have complained about various sicknesses following the floods, including skin irritation.They expressed difficulty in getting medication because of the lack of flood command posts.

“The floods have started receding from Sunday morning, but many residents experience skin irritation from exposure to flood water. Unfortunately, medicine does not exist here,” said resident Kurniawan, of Tangkahan subdistrict, Medan Labuhan district Source:thejakartapost.com

Sri Lanka

23, December, 2014. 3 Killed in Sri Lanka Floods and Mudslides

Three people died and more than 60,000 had to be evacuated to safer locations due to floods and mudslides caused by heavy rains around Sri Lanka, officials said Tuesday.

The Disaster Management Center said that three days of heavy rain in 15 districts also injured two persons and destroyed 1,900 homes.

Hospitals and government offices were inundated and some inmates of a prison were transferred to other facilities.

It is monsoon season in some parts of Sri Lanka, but many other areas not normally affected are also experiencing non-seasonal rain.

Dozens of people were killed in October when mudslides buried homes of tea plantation workers in the country's central hills. Source:abcnews.go.com

According to an expert, during heavy rain, the soil in the cleared hilly areas in Cameron Highlands erodes and the existing dam is no longer capable of containing a large quantity of water. This situation causes major floods. — TRP pic by Mokhsin Zamani. Source: therakyatpost.com

Regional Environmental Awareness of Cameron Highlands (Reach) president Ramakrishnan Ramasamy estimates that Cameron Highlands will be out of clean water in five years if illegal land clearing is not stopped. — TRP pic by Mokhsin Zamani. Source: therakyatpost.com

The floods leave a muddy trail of destruction in Ringlet. — Picture by Marcus Pheong. Source:themalaymailonline.com

Cars smashed against a wall after being carried by the mudslide in Ringlet. — KAMARUL ARIFFIN / The Star. Source: thestar.com

6 November, 2014. Cameron Highlands floods: Three dead, five injured

Three people were killed and five others were injured after heavy rains caused flash floods and a landslide at Cameron Highlands on Wednesday night (Nov 5).

The body of a 13-year-old boy, R Punesh, a student of Sekolah Menengah Kampung Raja, and an Indonesian vegetable farm worker, Anipan, 48, were found at 8.45am and 9.20am respectively on Thursday . A Nepalese vegetable farm worker, Md Yousuf Miya, 66, was found buried in Jalan Ulu Merah, Ringlet at 8.30pm on Wednesday.

Cameron Highlands district police chief, DSP Wan Mohd Zahari Wan Busu confirmed that to date, three people were killed while five others were injured in the 6.30pm incident on Wednesday. He said the body of the student was found by a security team and villagers about five kilometres from where he drowned in Sungai Telom, Kuala Terla in Kampung Raja.

Last year, Ringlet Lake in Bertam Valley at Cameron Highlands overflowed, causing a mud flood, killing four people and damaging more than 100 houses.

Residents of Ringlet consider this year's flash floods as the worst to hit the area even when compared with a similar incident due to the release of water from the Sultan Abu Bakar Dam in Lembah Bertam last year.

A vegetable lorry attendant, K.Kumaresan, 40, said this was the worst flooding in his 26 years living in Ringlet as water levels were waist high.

"We've experienced floods before but not as bad as what is happening now," he told Bernama when met at the Ringlet Multipurpose Hall today.

Recounting the incident, Kumaresan said water from the river gushed into his house in a blink of an eye and all he could think about at the time was to save his four family members.

"I took them (family) to a higher place and I didn't manage to salvage any important documents," he said.Source: themalaysianinsider.com

Jamaica’s world renowned 7-mile beach is eroding at an alarming rate!

Every year thousands of tourists from around the world are drawn to this beautiful shoreline filled with white sand along Jamaica’s western coast.

But now this unique shoreline of unrivaled beauty known as Seven Mile Beach is facing a serious threat that could see the beach completely disappear in as little as 30 years.

According to a report by Fox News, some sections of the beach are now barely wide enough for a decent-sized beach towel and according to the Jamaican National Environment and Planning Agency, sand is receding at a rate of over a metre each year.

“The beach could be totally lost within 30 years,” said Anthony McKenzie, a senior director at the agency.

Shrinking coastline long has raised worry for the area’s environmental and economic future. Now the erosion is expected to worsen as a result of climate change.

Fearful of losing their main draw, some alarmed hoteliers in the area are pressing the government to refill the beach with dredged sand, a pricey step many experts say is a temporary fix at best.

Plans are being readied to build submerged breakwaters which theoretically could slow loss of shoreline, using an initial $5.4 million in grants from a U.N. climate change convention.

The monitoring network of Cerro Negro de Mayasquer and Chiles, the "Siamese" volcanoes on the border between Ecuador and Colombia, reported increased seismic activity in the area, with earthquakes associated with the fracturing of rocks.

The total earthquakes until 13 October of around 25,000 events, characterized by epicenters located between 1,000 and 4,000 meters south-west of Chiles volcano, with a magnitude between 0.7 and 3.5 and a depth of between 300 and 7,000 meters (summit is located at 4700 meters). These earthquakes were not felt Ecuadorian side, but perceived by the inhabitants of Cumbal in the Chiles reserve. Slight inflation of the volcano is recorded.

Analysis of this activity was done in collaboration between IGEPN and Ingeominas.

The volcano Cerro Negro de Mayasquer - photo Ingeominas

Cerro Negro, to the left & Chiles, snowy, to the right - photo Minard Hall, 1985 (Escuela Politécnica Nacional, Quito) / in GVP

On October 20, at 2:33 p.m. local, an earthquake of magnitude 5.9 / 5.8 centered on the southwest flank of the volcano Chiles, 6 km depth was recorded, along to Tufiño of falling objects, damage of glass and other minor damage, and felt at Cumbal, Colombian side.

At that time, it's over 39,000 volcano-tectonic earthquakes were counted in 22 days, associated with the fracturing of rocks, accompanied by a lower proportion of earthquakes LP and VLP type, in connection with fluid movements. GPS stations on the southeast flank of the volcano indicate an increase of the inflation in the last days.

The alert level has risen to orange, Colombian side, following recent events. The IGEPN indicates that we are dealing with an initial phase of magmatic intrusion and is considering the possibility of a phreatic eruption at Chiles with production of ballistic missiles, ash fall or mud flows.